These days, we're hearing increasingly less from Gov. Rick Perry.
It's his last year in office, and he's been taking it easy?having fun in
the South Pacific while his would-be competitors in the 2016 presidential primary flame out in spectacular fashion.

He may not keep that low profile for that much longer, though. A
little scandal from the doldrums of last summer is roaring back to life,
and Perry faces the threat
of criminal charges over accusations that he tried to force the Travis
County district attorney to resign. There's the added intrigue over the
allegation that Perry's aim was to kill an investigation into the
scandal-plagued Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas
(CPRIT). It's one little thread in the well-worn sweater of Gov. Perry's
long tenure in office, but it threatens to damage his presidential
ambitions.

With stories like these, which build up and fade over long periods of
time, it's difficult to follow what's really going on. Many
people?including more than a few national reporters?seemed surprised to
learn this week that the longest-serving governor in Texas history may
be facing indictment. We hope this primer helps catch you up on the
story so far.